Daily Buzz: 8 April 2025
Top News
Black Monday Asia
Asian stock markets plunged sharply on Monday after US President Trump showed no signs of backing off controversial reciprocal tariffs, ratcheting up fears that a global trade war will land the world in recession.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index was the worst hit, closing down 13.22 percent, while Shanghai Composite Index tanked 7.34 percent.
Japan's benchmark Nikkei stock index shed 8.42 percent in the first minutes of trading before ending the day down 7.83 percent. Nikkei 225 futures were briefly halted after triggering circuit breakers.
"Japanese stocks are unlikely to stop declining unless US stocks cease falling further," said Yutaka Miura, senior technical analyst at Mizuho Securities Co.
South Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) lost 5.57 percent, Singapore stocks fell 7.6 percent, and Indian shares were down about 3 percent.
Top Business
Sovereign fund positive
China's Central Huijin Investment announced its confidence in China's capital market just before the Chinese stock market closed on Monday. The state-owned sovereign fund company said it fully recognizes the current value of allocating assets in Chinese stocks, increased its holdings in exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and vowed to continue working to maintain the stable operation of the market.
State-owned China Chengtong Group and China Reform Holdings Corp also reiterated their confidence and commitment. Both companies increased holdings in ETFs, state-owned firms and tech firms, and vowed to continue.
Future of farming
China unveiled a 2024-35 plan to accelerate the development of the nation's agricultural sector, including initiatives to increase the income of farmers.
The blueprint seeks to enrich the rural economy by plugging county-level industries into the supply chains of nearby larger cities and guiding a gradual relocation of labor-intensive industries to county areas.
China's farm and related rural industries contributed 15 percent to the nation's gross domestic product in 2023.
Agriculture stocks have defied the global stock market crash, with shares in seed companies like Heilongjiang Agriculture Co rising to the market's 10 percent daily price ceiling.
Economy
Festival tourism
The Ministry of Culture and Tourism estimated that 126 million domestic trips were taken across China during the three-day Qingming Festival that ended on Sunday, up 6.3 percent from a year earlier. Domestic tourism expenditure during the holiday, which traditionally honors ancestors with tomb-sweeping rites, rose 6.7 percent to 58 billion yuan (US$8 billion).
The National Immigration Administration reported 6.2 million inbound and outbound trips by Chinese and foreign travelers during the three days, an increase of nearly 20 percent from last year. Foreign nationals accounted for nearly 700,000 trips, marking a 40 percent rise.
Corporate
Microsoft denies China exit rumor
Microsoft Corp denied social media rumors that it would cease its operations in China. The speculation that surfaced over the weekend allegedly was based on an internal e-mail from Shanghai Wicresoft, Microsoft's first joint venture in China, established in 2002. The e-mail purported to suggest the company would cease operations in China starting today, due to changes in the geopolitical and international business environment. An employee from Wicresoft clarified to Sina Technology that the email referred only to some outsourcing operations.
Alibaba scouts talent
Alibaba Group's international branch has initiated the "Bravo 102" program to recruit top AI professional from around the world, offering to let successful applicants propose projects and select teams. Eighty percent of the company's campus recruiting positions are AI-related, due to its expansion into AI technologies. The group recently announced proposed investment of at least 380 billion yuan to build cloud centers and AI infrastructure in the next three years.
